> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.creao.ai/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # CREAO Connect > Pair your own Mac with CREAO so your agents can use its tools, apps and MCP servers, with your approval. CREAO Connect is a small app that pairs your own computer with your CREAO account. Once your computer is paired, your CREAO agents can use tools on it: run a terminal command, read and write files in folders you choose, and call MCP servers and Local Workers you install there. This is **Device Connect**. Your computer decides what runs, and by default every tool asks you first. > [!NOTE] > > CREAO Connect is in early access. If you don't see **Devices** in CREAO, it isn't enabled for your account yet. > [card] Desktop app (macOS) > > The app on this page: a window, a menu bar icon and approval pop-ups on your Mac. > [card] [Terminal and Linux servers](https://docs.creao.ai/features/device-connect/terminal.md) > > The same service on Linux servers, boards and VMs, managed from the command line. ## How it works ```mermaid theme={null} flowchart TD A[You ask in CREAO chat] --> C{Tool access on your device} C -- Off --> X[Not offered to your agent] C -- Ask --> P[You approve on your Mac or in CREAO] C -- Allow --> R[Runs on your computer] P -- Allow --> R P -- Deny --> D[Refused] R --> O[Result returns to the chat] ``` * **Tools run on your computer**, with your user account's access. The result goes back to the chat so your agent can continue. * **You stay in control.** Each tool is **Off**, **Ask** or **Allow** for each caller. Nothing set means **Ask**. * **The connection is outbound only.** Your computer connects to CREAO. You don't need to open ports or set up a VPN. ## Install and pair You need a Mac with Apple silicon and a CREAO account with early access. **1. Download the app** In CREAO, open **Devices** and click **Get CREAO Connect**, then **Download for macOS**. The download is a disk image. **2. Move it to Applications and open it** Drag **CREAO Connect** into your Applications folder, then open it from there. It has to live in Applications for install links from CREAO to work. **3. Name this computer** Under **Connect this computer**, enter a name such as "MacBook Pro" and click **Connect**. This is the name you mention in chat, so give each device a different one. **4. Approve the pairing code in CREAO** The app shows a pairing code. Click **Open approval page**, or open **Devices** in CREAO and click **I have a pairing code**. Check that the device name matches, then click **Approve device**. Codes expire after 10 minutes. If one expires, click **Get a new code**. ![The Pair a device dialog in CREAO showing the device name MacBook Pro and the Approve device button](https://mintcdn.com/creaoagent/m-58ldeOrwH0ia3W/images/device-connect-pair-approve.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=m-58ldeOrwH0ia3W\&q=85\&s=f91ba6350df8691c5182648cd0891154) Approve the pairing in CREAO. Approve only a device you set up yourself. > [!WARNING] > > Approve only a pairing you started yourself. If someone sends you a code to approve, click **I didn't start this**. When pairing is done, the app says **Computer connected** and the device appears on the **Devices** page in CREAO. ![The Devices page in CREAO listing a MacBook Pro and a build-server, both online](https://mintcdn.com/creaoagent/m-58ldeOrwH0ia3W/images/device-connect-devices-page.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=m-58ldeOrwH0ia3W\&q=85\&s=f0ca19631e340ff19329f7b19e860b75) Paired devices on the Devices page, with status, platform and what each one offers. ## The app The CREAO Connect window has five tabs. The header shows the connection status, **Open CREAO** and the **Agent access** switch. Close the window and the app keeps running in the menu bar. Quit it and your agents can't reach the computer until you open the app again. | Tab | What you do there | | - | - | | **Home** | See what needs your attention, the `@name` to use in chat, the MCP servers and workers installed on this computer, and the latest tool calls. Shortcuts open the CREAO catalog or **Add MCP server**. | | **Tools** | Choose who may use each tool: built-in tools and every MCP server. Add, sign in to, check, disable or remove MCP servers. | | **Workers** | See installed Local Workers, whether each is ready, its permissions and its past runs. | | **Activity** | Answer a worker that is waiting for you, review and revoke temporary permissions, and browse the log of everything that ran and who allowed it. | | **Settings** | Language, start at login, **Folders for file tools**, optional macOS permissions, restart the service, open logs, and **Unpair this computer**. | ![The CREAO Connect Home tab with installed MCP servers, a worker and recent executions](https://mintcdn.com/creaoagent/m-58ldeOrwH0ia3W/images/connect-app-home.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=m-58ldeOrwH0ia3W\&q=85\&s=c5db4d63cabd4bc1dbfc129fbc6e47a3) Home shows what this computer offers your agents and what ran recently. ## Use your device from chat Type `@` in the CREAO message box, choose **Devices**, pick your computer, then describe the task. For example: "@MacBook Pro list the PDFs in my Reports folder". Your agent picks the tool it needs. Each tool call appears in the chat as a **Device task** card with its status: **Waiting for approval**, **Running**, **Completed** or **Refused**. You can **Stop** a task from the card. A task keeps running on your device even if you leave the chat. > [!TIP] > > The device must be online when your agent starts a task. If the app isn't running, the task waits briefly and then expires. ## Tool access: Off, Ask, Allow Open **Tools**, then open a row's ⋯ menu and choose **Configure…**. **All tools** sets the default for the whole server, and each tool can override it. Every tool has one setting per caller: * **Agents in cloud**: your CREAO agents in chat, agents and scheduled runs. * **Local workers**: workers running on this computer. | Setting | What happens | | - | - | | **Off** | The tool isn't offered. Your agents can't see it, and no approval can turn it back on. | | **Ask** | Each call waits for your approval. This is the default. | | **Allow** | The tool runs without asking. | | **Default (…)** | The tool follows the **All tools** setting, shown in brackets. | ![The CREAO Connect tool settings dialog with Off, Ask and Allow controls per tool for Agents in cloud and Local workers](https://mintcdn.com/creaoagent/m-58ldeOrwH0ia3W/images/connect-app-tools.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=m-58ldeOrwH0ia3W\&q=85\&s=74a1567a598ea0d1ee4ebc6cf5d428e1) Each tool has a separate Off / Ask / Allow setting for agents in cloud and for local workers. Built-in tools include **Run a terminal command**, file tools and system information. A terminal command runs with your account's full access, so keep it on **Ask** unless you trust every request. ## Approval prompts When a tool is set to **Ask**, a **Permission request** pop-up appears on top of your other windows on the Mac. It names who is asking, the tool, and the details of the call. Tools that can make changes you can't undo say so. ![The CREAO Connect permission request pop-up asking to run a terminal command, with Deny and Allow once buttons](https://mintcdn.com/creaoagent/m-58ldeOrwH0ia3W/images/connect-app-consent.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=m-58ldeOrwH0ia3W\&q=85\&s=5f70e451c51a1a364d7a97fe0bc92e53) The approval pop-up on your Mac. Deny is the default; Allow runs the call. Choose what to allow under **Applies to** (**This call**, the tool, or **All of** its server) and how long under **For** (**Once**, **1 hour**, **8 hours** or **Always**). The allow button changes to match: | Answer | What it does | | - | - | | **Allow once** | Runs this one call. Nothing is saved. | | **Allow for 1 hour** / **Allow for 8 hours** | A temporary permission. Calls like this run without asking until it expires. You can revoke it early under **Activity → Active grants**. | | **Always allow** | Sets the tool, or the whole server, to **Allow** for that caller. Change it back any time in **Tools**. | | **Deny** | Refuses this call. | | **Turn off** (the ⋯ menu beside **Deny**) | Refuses the call and sets the tool to **Off** for that caller. | Your answer applies only to the caller that asked. Allowing a tool for your cloud agent doesn't allow it for local workers. A prompt that nobody answers is denied automatically when its countdown ends, after at most 15 minutes. While you're working in the pop-up, the countdown pauses. ### Answer from CREAO on the web or your phone You don't have to be at your Mac. When a prompt is waiting, CREAO shows it on the task card in the chat and sends you a notification. The card offers the same answers as the pop-up, and your Mac checks every answer before it acts. The pop-up says **You can also answer this in CREAO on your phone or browser** when this is available. ![A device task card in CREAO chat showing Approval needed with Deny and Allow once options](https://mintcdn.com/creaoagent/m-58ldeOrwH0ia3W/images/device-connect-chat-approval.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=m-58ldeOrwH0ia3W\&q=85\&s=d228fc809d4bbc3365e1b7002639ccc6) An approval card in CREAO chat. Answer it here or on your Mac, whichever is first. > [!WARNING] > > Anyone signed in to your CREAO account can answer your device's prompts. Keep your account secure, and sign out of shared browsers. ## Add MCP servers MCP servers give your agents new tools on your computer, such as a notes app, a browser or an internal API. > [tab] From the CREAO catalog > > 1. In CREAO, open **Devices** → **Browse MCP servers**, or click **Discover MCP servers** in the app. > 2. Open a server and click **Install on this Mac**. If your browser asks "Open CREAO Connect?", choose to open it. > 3. CREAO Connect shows exactly what will be installed: the command it runs or the address it connects to, any settings and any setup scripts. Nothing changes until you confirm. > 4. Fill in any settings, sign in if the server needs it, and wait for the check to confirm the server answers. > > The server starts right away. You don't need to restart anything. > [tab] Add one yourself > > 1. In the app, open **Tools** and click **Add** → **Manual install**, or click **Add MCP server** on Home. > 2. Paste the setup instructions from the server's page and click **Read this**. CREAO reads the text with AI, which uses a small amount of your credits. Or click **Enter details manually →** to fill in the details yourself. > 3. Review what will run or where data will be sent, then click **Add server**. Servers you add start with tool access set to **Ask**. Some catalog servers start **Off** for agents in cloud because a Local Worker is meant to drive them instead. ![An MCP server page in the CREAO catalog showing the install options](https://mintcdn.com/creaoagent/m-58ldeOrwH0ia3W/images/device-connect-linux-install-command.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=m-58ldeOrwH0ia3W\&q=85\&s=2df58e6956dcf218ab827c6db784138d) An MCP server from the CREAO catalog. Servers that also support Linux offer a command for your server. ## Local Workers A Local Worker is a small specialist agent installed on your computer, such as a files organizer. Your CREAO agent hands it a whole job, and the worker does that job with the tools on your computer that it declares. * **Install** workers from **Devices** → **Browse local workers** in CREAO. A worker that needs an MCP server shows **Needs setup** until that server is connected. * **Starting a worker asks first**, like a tool does. When you allow a start, that run can also use the worker's tools that make no irreversible changes. Actions that change things still ask, unless you opt in on the prompt. * **Questions.** A worker can ask you a question while it works. Answer it in **Activity**, or in the chat if the worker is set up to ask there. * **Permissions and runs.** In **Workers**, open a worker's ⋯ menu and choose **Configure…** to see its **About**, **Permissions** and **Runs**. ## File access The file tools read and write only inside the folders listed under **Settings → Folders for file tools**. If you add no folders, they use a single workspace folder that CREAO Connect creates. Add the folders you want your agents to work in, for example `~/Documents/Reports`. > [!NOTE] > > The folder list covers the file tools only. A terminal command or an MCP server can reach anything your account can, which is why both ask by default. ## Pause, unpair or remove a device * **Pause agent access.** Click **Agent access** in the app's header. While access is paused, agents can't act on this computer. Click it again to resume. * **Unpair from the Mac.** Open **Settings** → **Unpair this computer**. Agents lose access at once. To reconnect, pair again with a new code. * **Remove from CREAO.** On the **Devices** page, open the device's actions menu and choose **Revoke**. The device is disconnected at once and can't reconnect without pairing again. Use **Rename** there to change the name your agents see. ## Privacy and safety * **Tools run on your computer.** CREAO stores the device's name and platform, the list of tools it offers, and each task with its result. The result is sent back to the chat so your agent can use it. * **Nothing runs without your approval** unless you set it to **Allow**, chose **Always allow**, or gave a temporary permission that hasn't expired yet. **Off** always wins. * **Settings and sign-ins stay local.** The values you enter while installing an MCP server are saved on your computer and are not sent to CREAO. * **Everything is logged.** **Activity** records each call, who asked, how it was decided and how it ended, including answers you gave in CREAO. * **"Read-only" and "Can make changes" labels** come from the tools themselves. CREAO doesn't verify them, and your device still asks before running anything set to **Ask**. For more detail, see [Security](https://docs.creao.ai/trust-and-safety/security.md#device-connect-security) and [Privacy](https://docs.creao.ai/trust-and-safety/privacy.md). ## Troubleshooting > [accordion] The task says the approval timed out > > Nobody answered the prompt before its countdown ended, so it was denied. Home shows prompts that expired recently. Ask your agent to try again and answer on your Mac or on the chat card. For a tool you always want to run, choose **Always allow** or set it to **Allow** in **Tools**. > [accordion] Nothing happens when I click Install in the catalog > > Your browser may have asked "Open CREAO Connect?". If you dismissed that dialog, click install again and choose to open it. If the app isn't in your Applications folder yet, download it from **Devices** → **Get CREAO Connect**, open it once, then try again. > [accordion] My device shows Offline > > The app isn't running, or the computer is asleep or offline. Open CREAO Connect. The status dot turns green when it's connected. If the app says the computer isn't paired, or that access was withdrawn, pair it again. > [accordion] My agent says a tool isn't available > > The tool is **Off** for agents in cloud, its MCP server is disabled or signed out, or **Agent access** is paused. Check **Tools** and the app's header. Home lists servers that failed to connect or need you to sign in. > [accordion] A worker shows Needs setup > > An MCP server the worker needs isn't connected. Open the worker in **Workers** to see what it needs, then install or sign in to that server. ## Next steps > [card] [Terminal and Linux servers](https://docs.creao.ai/features/device-connect/terminal.md) > > Run CREAO Connect on a Linux server, board or VM, and drive it from SSH or tmux. > [card] [Skills and Connectors](https://docs.creao.ai/features/skills-and-connectors.md) > > Cloud connectors and skills, which don't need a device. 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